Business

New state initiative intended to lure investment to Colorado

Idea to convert ideas to jobs

Fort Morgan Times staff

Posted:
01/11/2013 10:36:47 AM MST

State lawmakers announced an initiative this week to help boost Colorado's high-tech business sector and create new highly-skilled, well-paying jobs by finding ways to help businesses get capital through grants.

Gov. John Hickenlooper joined Speaker-elect Mark Ferrandino, Senate President-elect John Morse, and members of the General Assembly to announce the bipartisan House Bill 13-1001-- "The Advanced Industries Accelerator Act."

The economic development legislation is intended to create new high-skill jobs, increase exports, drive innovation and capital investment, create stronger partnerships between educational institutions and industry, accelerate technology commercialization and promote Colorado's research and development activities.

"We can boost Colorado's advanced industries by increasing their access to capital," Hickenlooper said. "These types of bipartisan efforts will help Colorado continue to grow and sustain a long-term innovative ecosystem that creates highly-skilled jobs and prepares Coloradans to fill them."

Advanced industries are comprised of engineering and research and development-intensive companies that deliver groundbreaking, innovative products. They share common workforce skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as well as manufacturing.

The economic impact of these industries is significant, accounting for 30 percent of the state's economy, 520,300 high-paying jobs and hundreds of thousands of ancillary jobs.

"This bipartisan legislation marks a major investment in Colorado's long-term economic prosperity," Ferrandino said. "It sends a clear message to Colorado's innovators that we are there for them over the long haul, and to leaders everywhere that Colorado can compete with anyone for any industry."

HB 1001, sponsored by Reps. Dave Young (D-Greeley) and Cheri Gerou (R-Evergreen) and Sens. Rollie Heath (D-Boulder) and Pat Steadman (D-Denver), provides for an incentive that encourages more collaboration among industry, research institutions and federal laboratories, and private-sector funders. It will create a program that will provide grants to advanced industries seeking funding for proof of concept research and development, early stage capital and retention and infrastructure.

The program will be managed out of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), which will work with research institutions, industry partners and the Economic Development Commission to qualify companies and disburse funds.

"The funding that Colorado's advanced industries will receive through these new grants will help convert ideas into real jobs, enable us to keep and grow companies we help create, and build a foundation to help companies succeed," said Ken Lund, executive director of OEDIT.

How it will help

Colorado's research institutions and federal labs currently bring in close to $2 billion annually in advanced technology related research funds. Additional investment in advanced industries will help leverage even more dollars into the state, which will translate into more products and jobs.

HB 1001 will accelerate the commercialization process, enabling Colorado companies and products to spin-out of Colorado research institutions and significantly reduce the time-to-market cycle.

Funding will be directed at strategic points in a company's capital cycle, which will help retain assets and investments in Colorado and create stronger ties to Colorado for future growth.

Eligibility

To access proof-of-concept grants, researchers and companies must use research performed at Colorado institutions. Most grants would be limited to $150,000.

Preference will be given to those projects that focus on technologies that cut across multiple advanced industries and across multiple research institutions. Such collaborative projects may qualify for funding in excess of $150,000.

Those seeking the grants must make a 25 percent match.

Early-stage capital and retention grants require at least 50 percent of the employees for a project must be based in Colorado. This grant size is limited to $250,000

Preference will be given to companies that provide services or products across multiple advanced industries. Such companies may qualify for early-stage funding in excess of $250,000

Those seeking early-stage grants must make a 67 percent match.

Grants for infrastructure funding are limited to $500,000. Preference will be given to those projects that focus on technology or product development that cut across multiple advanced industries and across multiple research institutions. Such collaborative projects may qualify for funding in excess of $500,000.

Those seeking early-stage grants must make a 67 percent match.

Preference will be given to facilities for research and development, production and commercialization. Preference will be given for workforce development through centers of excellence tied to advanced industries' workforce needs.

Some funding sources for HB 1001 have been identified, and the Governor's Office will work with the General Assembly on the funding details.

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